Report of the Africa Food Systems Forum (AGRF) 2023 Held in Dar es Salaam

Report of the Africa Food Systems Forum (AGRF) 2023 Held in Dar es Salaam from 5 to 8 September 2023

Key Highlights: During the Africa Food Systems Forum (AGRF) 2023 in Dar es Salaam, the East African Business Council (EABC) collaborated with GIZ Business Scouts Programme Advisor Ms. Lydia Koch and the German Agri-Business Alliance (GAA) Manager Mr. Robin Walter to enhance the implementation of the program focused on improving food security and mitigating global crises. GAA agreed to be a crucial implementing partner, providing facilitators for capacity-building webinars addressing key issues faced by agri-actors. Additionally, EABC engaged the China Africa Business Council (CABC) for potential collaboration under the China-East Africa South-South Industrial Promotion Project. EABC representatives visited exhibition booths, identifying 23 companies/institutions and 27 contact persons for future collaboration.

Background and Objectives: EABC, supported by sequa gGmbH through the Business Scouts Fund Programme (BSF), participated in AGRF 2023 to network with key agri-actors in the East African Community (EAC) and identify interventions for enhancing food security and addressing global crises. The forum, organized by AGRA and its partners, revolved around the theme “Recover, Regenerate, and Act: Africa’s Solutions to Food Systems Transformation.”

Engagements with Partners and Lessons Learnt: EABC actively engaged with GIZ and GAA during AGRF 2023, solidifying partnerships for upcoming initiatives. The lessons learned included strengthening collaboration with these partners and leveraging the EABC-BSF sequa program to engage regional agriculture solution providers, disseminating low-cost solutions and building resilience among agri-actors. The forum also highlighted the interest of exhibitors in participating in future engagements organized by EABC to promote food security in the region.

Next Steps for EABC: Following the forum, EABC outlined key next steps, including a request to sequa gGmbH for a no-cost extension and a review of the EABC-BSF Programme Implementation Schedule. Additionally, EABC plans to develop a concept note for a webinar series focusing on smart agriculture, post-harvest loss management, and sustainable agriculture practices. The council will also engage selected solution providers identified during AGRF 2023 for their participation in the webinar series.